Friday, April 15, 2011

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR: Michael Alanis from Corpus Christi offers his opinions on a local joint.

Miller’s BBQ has been around for a long time in Northwest Corpus Christi. While it has two other locations, we opted for the original. Walking in, we were met with a cafeteria style line and the meats right in front of us. We chose two brisket plates one lean and one moist with sausage. The ribs looked delicious so we ordered a few. We ordered potato salad and pinto beans for our sides. As we made our way down the line, the BBQ sauces (2 types) were available in plentiful pans.

The beans were decent but lacked a little salt, and the potato salad was good as it was not overpowered by any one ingredient. The meats, well that’s another story. The “lean” brisket was tender but very dry. Now I know why the sauce is so plentiful. The “moist” brisket was so chewy that I was unable to even swallow a piece. I hate to leave brisket on my plate but I had to this time. The sausage is made “right next door” said the kid slicing it. (Miller’s used to have a meat market next door). The sausage is very good and could easily replace any of the top sausage vendors at your local supermarket.

The ribs were the best thing we had this visit. They were tender and smoky with a bit of crust and not overpowered with a rub. They were juicy and flavorful; I needed to order a few more. The ribs are worthy another visit as is the sausage; take a chance on the brisket, if you must. Rating **

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DISCLAIMER:

Each joint is judged on the essence of Texas 'cue...sliced brisket and pork ribs. Sausage is only considered if house made. Sauce is good, but good meat needs no adornment to satisfy. Each review can only be based on specific cuts of meat on that particular day. Finally, if the place fries up catfish or serves a caesar salad, then chances are they aren't paying enough attention to the pits, so we mostly steered clear.

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GLOSSARY

Crust - Layer of black goodness around the edges of brisket or ribs that holds excellent flavor.

Meat Caramel - After gratuitous amounts of smoke are applied, and liquid rendered fat has come to the surface of the meat to mix with the applied rub, a chemical rendering takes place that creates a sweet sticky layer on the surface of the meat that clings to the tip of your finger when pulled away from the meat. This is affectionately known as meat snot.

Parboiled - A process in which ribs are boiled before being grilled or smoked. This is what makes meat fall off the bone, and it also leaves good, flavorful fat in the water. It's cheating.Rendered - The process of cooking fat until it literally melts into the meat. Cook it too fast and the fat is absent from the meat creating dryness. If it's not cooked long enough, the fat remains gelatinous and unsavory. There's no need to put well rendered fat aside.Roast-Beefy - Brisket that hasn't been bathed in smoke, but rather tastes as if it was thrown in an oven like any hunk of roast beef. It might be good food, but it's not BBQ.Sauced - Unsolicited BBQ sauce slathered over top of your meat, usually to add what was non-existent flavor in the meat.Smoke Line - Red line around the outside edge of sliced brisket just below the crust that signifies an adequate amount of time in the smoker.Sugar Cookie - Fat that turns to a slightly sweet and crispy flavorful nugget after copius amounts of smoke are applied.